CBS, 8:00 p.m. ET
Postponed from last week: Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) demotes his buddies and gets a new wing man – a real hound. As in an actual dog, with four legs and a tail. But Barney bonds with him anyway, and uses him mercilessly to attract women.
TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET
Ten days before Ken Burns presents his company’s newest documentary, a two-parter called The Dust Bowl, TCM presents this 1940 movie, a classic adaptation of the John Steinbeck novel about poor Oklahoma farmers trying to improve their fortunes by heading West. Henry Fonda stars.
HBO, 9:00 p.m. ET
SERIES PREMIERE: This isn’t the wonderful Harrison Ford movie about murder, romance and the Amish. It’s a new documentary series, presented in half-hour segments each Monday, by Miami Vice creator Michael Mann. And the Michael Mann influence is all over the place, which is both good and bad. It’s good, because this study of photojournalists in high-risk locations is loaded with vitality and well-framed images. And it’s bad, or at least a bit wearying, because it relies so heavily on music to propel its narrative. In this first installment, for example, the focus is on Eros Hoagland, who has covered such tension-filled hot spots as El Salvador, Iraq and Afghanistan, and whose personal story is almost shockingly dramatic. But in following him around the violent border town of Juarez, Mann plays, at length, a cover version of Bob Dylan’s “Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues” – the song that begins with the lyrics “When you’re lost in the rain in Juarez / and it’s Easter time too.” A little too obvious.
HBO, 9:30 p.m. ET
The night before the 2012 presidential election, HBO repeats its well-made telemovie drama about the 2008 presidential election, for which Julianne Moore won an Emmy for her portrayal of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Is this a well-timed repeat for Election Day Eve? You betcha.
ABC, 10:01 p.m. ET
In tonight’s episode, Castle (Nathan Fillion) and Beckett (Stana Katic) attend a sci-fi convention to investigate a murder. As you might expect, given Fillion’s fantasy-cred resume (his credits include Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, all for Joss Whedon), this episode is a very playful and respectful nod to fans of such shows. And yes, in-jokes abound, so be on the lookout for Extras.